


A Little Twisted

by Scarlett_Letter



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU - Beginning of the War, F/M, Non-Canon Relationship, Not Canon Compliant, Not HBP or DH compliant, Original Character(s), Veela!Draco
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-20
Updated: 2016-09-28
Packaged: 2017-12-12 11:09:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/810900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlett_Letter/pseuds/Scarlett_Letter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Draco just barely missed his one chance at freedom.<br/>Now on an unwilling path to become a death eater, an old friend is entrusted to him. Add to that certain changes brought out by a brilliant witch that sees more than the act he gives the rest of the world, and a sprinkle of a few meddling friends and you can bet for a happy ending; even if getting there was a little twisted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blast from the Past

**Author's Note:**

> So... this is my first HP fanfic, and one of my first ones ever, but this story has been sitting in my computer for ages. I figured I would finish it, and post it here. I hope you guys like it. I appreciate constructive criticism but please, if you tell me you don't like something tell me why so I can improve. Also, it's rated T now but I might change to M later on for language and maybe violence. But anyway, enjoy and thank you :)

Draco Malfoy has been told many shocking things in his 16 years of life, being the son of a Death Eater and self-proclaimed arch nemesis to the-boy-who-lived-to-be-a-pain-in-the-arse does that for you.

Draco felt the wards shift around the manor and knew that his charge was here. Saying he was apprehensive would be an understatement; this could go either really good or really terribly catastrophically bad. And it had been so long since the last time he saw her that he was leaning towards the latter. With a sigh he got off his bed and went slowly down the hall to the stairs, the whole conversation with his father going through his mind.

 

_It was a beautiful day, a breeze coming through the window in the study bringing in the fresh scent of roses, his mother’s favorites. That coupled with the knowledge that his father was safely put away in Azkaban was enough for Draco to let a soft satisfied sigh escape his lips._

_The Death Eater raid had come as a surprise, anyone that was suspected of being one was put away, no dementors until they were proven guilty, but under horrid circumstances nonetheless. His father, of course, had the dark mark making it easy to convict him._

_He snapped his fingers, and with a pop a house elf appeared in front of him. “Get me some tea and sandwiches.” He said without looking up from his book._

_“Yes, Master Malfoy.”_

_“Draco.” He didn’t say it because he particularly liked the elf, or wanted to familiarize with those creatures; sure they were useful, but they weren’t human. No, there was no romanticism behind it. He just hated knowing that he shared the same name as the man he hated most._

_“Yes, Master Draco” and the elf disapparated with a pop._

_He went back to reading the business reports, as much responsibility as this was for a sixteen year old he was enjoying learning about the business. He liked knowing where his investments were and how the companies he owned were making money. Of course, as a minor he had to double check everything with his mother but she was willing enough to let him handle it all, she said as much when he expressed his interest: ‘Oh good, I simply have no head for business and since this is your legacy the sooner the better.’ And so this is what he imagined doing with his life, he even had a plan as to how to deal with the business while he was at Hogwarts. Thank Merlin he could now forget about the war._

_Suddenly, the flames of the floo rose up breaking him from his musings. ‘No one but mother and him can get through the floo line when I want no calls... He got up from his chair in wonder and glanced at the floo, and then his heart stopped. There, looking at him from the green flames of the floo, was his father. Think of the devil…_

_“But you are in Azkaban!” Only after did he realize that it probably was not the smartest thing to say._

 _His father’s eyes flashed and his gaze turned positively venomous, the wavering of the green flames giving his face an eerie look. His voice however, revealed none of his irritation. “Well Draco, I suppose the guards would let me floo you right after my afternoon tea.”_

_“I’m sorry father. It was just… surprising.” Draco’s mind was reeling, the shock not wearing off completely. What would he do now? How did his father escape? Is he coming back here? Shit! He can’t be…_

_“I supposed that is a much more appealing thought than my son being as dimwitted as he sounds” Draco could only clench his fists and bite his tongue “now really, I have two important matters to discuss with you. But I’m afraid I can’t do so at the moment. I have sent a letter to your mother. Reading it would explain most of our… circumstances. But for now, goodbye Draco. Don’t fail me.”_

_And just like that he was left in the study alone, his heart feeling like a dementor had a solid grip on it. Within a second Draco was off looking for his mother to see what that blasted letter had to say, not sparing a glance to the house elf that popped back in with his food._

 

As he got to the landing he couldn’t help but think that only one potentially good thing came out of this. He could finally see her again, be allowed to talk to her again… Merlin he missed her. But still he couldn’t shake the heavy feeling in his chest. _I wonder if she’s the same… I wonder if she is the one. I hope she’s not._ When he reached the parlor he saw a couple of house elves putting down a trunk, and then a small bag and a parcel of books on top. A petite girl with dark brown hair was pointing and giving directions to the house elves.

He took a second to study her before she noticed him. She was wearing a navy blue summer dress with a high collar and no sleeves that reached her knees, and flat brown shoes, her hair was delicately swept up in a bun with wisps of hair coming out of it in an endearing way. She looked the same as he remembered her, from the caramel color of her skin to the dark brown of her hair, at least that’s what he thought until he saw her eyes. Her gaze was icy as she looked at him, showing none of the warmth he’d come to associate with her amber eyes, and in a second he heard her equally icy voice telling the house elves not to jostle her owl. It really was quite a fantastic specimen, a Northern great horned if Draco had it right, and he rarely ever had it wrong with things relating to money or magic.

 “What is your owl’s name? It isn’t the same one as before.”

“That will be all, leave” with a small bow and a pop the house elves apparated away. “His name is Licht.”

“List? That is… an interesting name for an owl.” Said Draco as he approached her, no trace of humor in his voice.

“Not list, Draco. Licht. It means Light in German. After Dusk I figured I should name this one something less somber.” She said with just as much emotion in her voice. How could he have forgotten that? Her letter about the death or her beloved owl was one of the last she sent him, and considering how few and far between they had been to begin with he felt a little ashamed, of course there was no sense in showing it so he just nodded.

 “Draco why don’t you show our guest her room for the night” said his mother regally, but her eyes flashed warningly. Telling him without words to keep in mind what she told him and not upset their guest.

 “Is there anything you require for the night?” he asked. She just nodded at the small bag. He grabbed it and told her to follow him. He saw the girl give his mother a small nod out of the corner of his eye and then they started ascending the stairs. Once they got to the second floor he pointed to the fourth door in the hall “That is my room. Yours is in the same floor at the end of the hall.” After a few seconds of silence they reached her room. Opening the door he asked “where would you like me to put your bag?”

“The chair by the wall is fine.” He moved towards it and heard the door close and lock behind him and her mutter a quick silencing charm. He turned around with an eyebrow raised wondering what in the bloody hell she thought she was doing, when all of a sudden he just saw a flash of blue before he had a face full of dark brown hair. His first reaction was to wrap his arms around her before she fell on her arse, or toppled them both over.

“Oh Draco! It’s been so long!” she said pulling away slightly to look at his face. “How have you been? Did I surprise you? I was quite convincing wasn’t I? Amazing really. I should win an actor of the year award for my performance!”

* * *

 

Downstairs, Narcissa Malfoy was pacing, she never dared do something so unladylike when her husband was around but now that he was gone, at least temporarily, there was no sense in driving herself mad with worry and just sitting there like a porcelain doll. At least this way she could get some of her frustrations out.

Narcissa had never wanted to be wife to a Death Eater; she had a happy family before He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named ever came into the picture. Sure hers wasn’t a love match at first, but it was a convenient marriage, and he was an agreeable man so she did come to care for Lucius in time.

Draco had never known the non Death Eater Lucius, the last time Lucius Malfoy had had a true smile on his face was when Draco was barely 2 years old.

* * *

 

She was looking at him with a satisfied smirk on her face. At first he didn’t know what she was saying, she was talking so fast but then his muddled brain caught up with her words and he broke into a large smile and hugged her just as tight as she did a moment ago.

 “Merlin, you scared me half to death with that game of yours! You are positively sadistic, you brat.”

“That is your entire fault Draco, you should know me better than that. Goodness, people would think that we aren’t childhood friends, that you don’t love me anymore.” She said with a playful glare. Draco couldn’t help but laugh, this was his friend, the one he’d been looking forward to seeing again after so long. “Merlin only knows, if you reacted like this I wonder what Blaise and Pansy will say when they see me.”

 “They will probably be complete arseholes back to you, pet.” He said using his nickname for her “You, of all people, did not just called me an arsehole Drake!” she said with a scoff getting back on her feet.

 “I’m just joking.” He said giving her a small kiss on the cheek “But how have you been, Scarlett? I’m so glad you are here! I just wish…” he sighed running a hand through his hair so she finished his sentence for him “You only wish that it wasn’t under these circumstances.” “Yeah… I missed you but you really shouldn’t be here.”

 “Well, that at least answers the first issue… although, considering how you just turned sixteen I wouldn’t rule out the possibility completely.” Draco gave her an incredulous stare “Wait, did you actually want to be my mate?” Scarlett scoffed “Don’t be gross Draco. But you can’t deny that if I had been, this whole entire situation would be a whole lot more convenient, an not to mention a hell of a lot safer.”

 Draco thought about it and realized that she was right. He stared at her hard, willing anything other than brotherly feelings to surface. He was probably staring at her for a solid five minutes before she puffed out her cheeks. He smiled and shook his head. He loved her, there was no doubt about that, he just knew it was not that kind of love. “Maybe if you were a little less childish I could actually find you mildly appealing. At least, a little less monstrous.” She just stuck his tongue out at him and moved towards the bed.

 “Sit with me, we have much to talk about.” And so he sat and answered all of her questions regarding school, friends, enemies, Quidditch, and everything that popped into her head. He in turn asked his own questions. He knew she was trying to avoid talking about his orders but they had to get to it at some point, before they got on the train to Hogwarts tomorrow.

 “I can’t wait to get to Hogwarts tomorrow… what house do you think I’ll be in? I mean the hat did consider putting you in Gryffindor…” she laughed a little at that “I can see it, but your father! He would’ve had a fit.”

 “Think I don’t know that? That’s why I did my damnest to convince him to put me in Slytherin.”

 “Do you think I could convince him to put me in any house other than Hufflepuff?” She said with an adorable look of distaste on her face. “It would be better if you got into Gryffindor, much as I hate to admit it. I’d rather you were in Slytherin with all of us, but it would be harder to get what we need that way.” She nodded and said nothing. This was her way of acknowledging the subject without delving to deep into it. Well, that just wouldn’t do. They needed to get on the same page fast.

 “Would you like to read father’s letter?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. “You’d need me to make the ink appear on the paper however, as you know, with him being an Azkaban escapee he had to take certain precautions.” She looked at him with anger and compassion in her gaze; he didn’t even know that was possible. “I really wish he hadn’t escaped, I wish he had stayed there to rot. When he was captured I thought… maybe now you had a chance, you could get away from it all, be free… But he bloody ruined it!” She got off the bed and started pacing, getting so agitated she started ranting and raving in all the languages she knew, which were a lot but for some reason she preferred Spanish. That’s why he always thought her mother must have been of Latin descent, what with her temper and all.

 “Calm down, pet.” He said reaching for her; she looked at him like she wanted to slap him. Amusing but it wouldn’t do to get in a tussle on the first day. “I understand, S. Believe me. But now that they are all back there’s nothing I can do but obey. I don’t know about you but I fancy both of us breathing.”

“Yeah? Well, I rather fancy being free more than breathing.” He snorted. She had no idea what those words meant. War was approaching and as sons and daughters of Death Eaters the only way to achieve freedom was death. Other than that, Draco saw no alternative. He moved over to his trunk and got the letter out. He unfolded it and tapped it with his wand while muttering the Malfoy motto and passed it to her. She saw the letters swirling and flying on the page until finally, they stopped.

>   
>  Draco,  
>  As you very well know I have never been a sentimental man and there is much to say, so I will cut right to the chase. Draco you have Veela magic in your blood, from my side of the family. That does not mean you have the blood of a Veela, you would be dead already if that were true. No, one bit your grandmother while she was pregnant with me; the horrible creature fancied her his mate and sought to mark her. Don’t worry, your grandfather Abraxas did our blood a favor and killed the blasted thing. However, the magic of the Veela has been strong in our family ever since.  
>  The magic was mostly dormant in me thanks to draughts, but I believe the Veela magic in you has started its awakening, there was no way to know that the magic would become stronger. We never took precautions because we didn't suspect it would continue down the bloodline, there are going to be certain changes. You can find books about how this changes will present themselves in the Malfoy library, no need for me to bore you with the details. I do feel the need to tell you that having Veela magic coursing through your veins does not make you any less of a pureblood. Magic is in that blood and it comes from every single one of our ancestors do not forget that.  
>  As for the other matter I need to talk about, I informed the Dark Lord of your impending changes, and the strong magic in your blood has piqued his interest. He decided that he would send a very special guest to the manor, and to Hogwarts with you to keep an eye on your changes. So be expecting Scarlett at the house soon, I do not believe I need to tell you to be an excellent host to her or to point out that a match with his daughter would give us a most advantageous edge. And like I said, do not fail me in this Draco.
> 
> LM.

‘Well, that was a very informative letter… not. Have you checked out any of the books in your library?”

“I’ve skimmed through them, they basically say that the change will be more obvious to me the closest I am to my mate, like some sort of beacon so I recognize her now that I'm of age. Veelas are positively pathetic creatures, they live and die for their mate, they’d rather die than harm it in any way apparently.”

“Oh come off it Draco, where’s the romantic in you. That’s not pathetic, it’s sweet. You are just mad because you don’t know who it is… or maybe you are mad because you know who you wish it was, but don’t want to get your hopes up” he blushed hotly at her comment, sure he had thought about it, going through a list of all the girls he knew at Hogwarts to see if any of them could be it, or if he could tolerate any of them being it… and it always came back to her.

Hermione, with her now tamed but still thick curls that smelled like lavender, he remembered all the trouble he had to go through to find out, it was worth it. Unwillingly, he thought of her warm smile, to anyone but him, her beautiful eyes that sparkled whenever she learned something new and interesting, the way she laughed with her idiotic friends, her eagerness to answer any and all questions, her fierce attitude defending anything she believed in… he fell in love with her so gradually, he didn’t even realize it for what it was until it was too late.

She was still a muggle-born; she was still Potter’s best friend, and Weasel’s love interest, and he was still a half Veela without a mate. But he couldn’t help himself. He could only wish he had not been born to this role, otherwise he might have a semblance of a chance. Of course, the fact that he was such an arrogant, egotistical prat to her all of the time didn’t help his case.

“I have no idea what you are talking about” he said warningly, but she’d known him too long to let that stop her.

  
“I mean that crush you have on ‘the smartest witch in our year, if not the whole of Hogwarts’” with a groan he said “I was a kid then, I was like what, thirteen, fourteen? Plus I also remember telling you how she drove me absolutely mental!” of course he knew exactly why it drove him mental and it had more to do with a certain freckled weasel.

“Hmm… no if I remember correctly you said something along the lines of: 

 

> Potter is an idiot. He puts himself in danger with no guarantee that he’ll even come out alive; sure it’s brave but also bloody foolish. And to top it all off he drags his friends into it. I understand why the weasel would do it; he’s loyal to a fault and not the smartest in the bunch. But what I don’t understand is how Hermione as smart as she is, is willing to put herself in such danger. It’s absolutely baffling to me how someone so brilliant could be such a reckless fool!

  
And considering my near photographic memory and the fact that I’ve reread your letters a million times, that’s verbatim.”

“I hate you sometimes, you know that right?”

“You are just saying that, you love me too much to hate me,” she said with a cheeky smile. He really should’ve known better than to write her any of that, specially since it seemed like he even put in a good quality of the stupid weasel, just how in the hell did that happen?

Hermione really was bad for him, or too good for him… obviously it was the latter.

“Can we get back on track here? How am I going to find this mate of mine? And how are you going to do your part of this whole ordeal? I’m not sorry to say this pet; I don’t believe you can do this. You just don’t have that kind of evil in you.” Draco said seriously.

“You’ll be surprised what people can do when push comes to shove, Draco,” she said in the same icy tone he’d just heard for the first time earlier. He wanted to ask her, he had some idea what had happened in the few years they were separated, but he was sure she didn’t want to talk about it. So he just nodded and said “Ok, then help me with my problem and we’ll deal with yours when we must.”

“Well, then here is what I think. There is no guarantee that your mate is in Hogwarts or that she would be an acceptable choice-“ at his glare she added hastily “for your father. I know enough to know that Veela instinct picks someone who would be absolutely compatible to the Veela’s personality and character. In other words, she would be perfect for you.” He gave her a nod to proceed.

“As I said, since there is no guarantee why don’t we let your parents, and my keepers, believe that their suspicions were met with positive results. That would buy us time to figure out what to do.”

“Ok, but what if she isn’t in Hogwarts and my Veela sense calls for me to go find her wherever she is, or worse what if she is in Hogwarts and I can’t help myself or the Veela in me”

“Well, for the first I’ll just go with you, we can both look for her. We can tell them that your Veela does not believe we are safe so we decided to elope.”

“You would do that? Do you realize what that would mean? I will do it because it’d be like death being without my mate anyway, but you? If they find us after we ran, they’ll kill us for treason.”

“I know that well Draco, and as much as I want to say I’m doing it for you, I’m not. I’m doing it for me, for my freedom.” A heavy silence settled in the air while they realized the gravity of her words.

She knew she would die either way, this at least gave her some say in the matter. She could die for a cause she didn’t believe in or she could die because she stood up for something. He realized that she had changed since he last spoke to her, she was braver than him for one: she would do what was right.

“You aren’t going to do it. You are not going to give the bastard the satisfaction of using you to further his war.” He said accusatorily, demanding her to tell him otherwise.

“You know me so well, Draco. I thought I could at least keep you safe by keeping you oblivious…” she told him with a sad smile.

“He won’t just kill you Scarlett, he’ll find you no matter where you run and he’ll torture you until you wished you were death. And then! He’ll keep you alive in agony just because you are you!”

“I know that Draco. But I’ve survived so far. I guarantee you, I know what to expect and eventually, I’ll find a way to just die or he’ll get bored and kill me. I’ve seen it happen.”

She was no longer the girl that followed him around crying because Blaise pushed her in the mud. She was a girl that took any situation head on. He was happy knowing that even without him she had become strong and he was proud that even with the shit-hand life had dealt her, she grew up to be this kind of person. But he was furious still; he’d never felt this helpless in his life. There was nothing he could do to change her mind, but he could be there with her when it happened. Like she was here for him now.

“He will not take you. No matter what happens even if I have to die. I will not let him take you.”

“Draco… you can’t-“

“No, you are my sister. Maybe not by blood but we grew up together. You, Pansy, and Blaise are the only reason I’m not a complete bastard like my father.” He told her seriously, fire flashing in his eyes “And my mate would understand if she really is as perfect for me as the fairy tales say.” He knew it was true, he only hoped when he had to leave his mate it wouldn’t kill him, as he feared it would.

“Stop being such a cynic. You know it’s true. But you shouldn’t make that kind of promise without meeting her first. She might have a different opinion... or a better solution in her brilliant head.” She said with tears in her eyes and a watery smile.

“It’s because I haven’t met her that I should. If I did find her all she would do is be in danger. She would be used against me in any way possible but if I don’t know, if I don’t tell her, she can be safe.” He caught her meaning at the word ‘brilliant’ and even if his heart skipped a beat at the thought he needed to believe it wasn’t her. Even though the Veela in him disagreed. It was a dreary feeling, nagging at him. As if telling him everything he was saying was wrong.

She answered with a self-deprecating laugh “We really are self-serving bastards... though I really wish the hat will put me in Gryffindor, as much as my character screams ‘snake’”

With a humorless smile he raked his hand through his hair, mussing it up. “Now you are just being an idiot. But I believe we’ve settled all matters we needed to settle for now. We will not fight in a war that has nothing to do with us, for a cause we don’t believe in. And that’s that.” He continued with a tired sigh “We both need to get some sleep for the train tomorrow. Goodnight Scarlett” He said kissing her forehead.

“Goodnight Draco. Pleasant dreams”


	2. Trains and Trite

“Are both your trunks ready, Draco?”

 

“Yes, mother. In fact they are as ready as they were when you asked me the first two times at home, and then in the carriage, and just now when we arrived at the station” Draco said, mustering as much patience as he could; no matter how nervous and on edge he was, this was his mother.

 

“Don’t worry Mrs. Malfoy, we have everything we need. And we can owl the manor if we need anything, correct?” Scarlet interjected in a bored tone, turning her cold gaze from the students around her, to Narcissa. Draco was still surprised how easily Scarlet could change her personality. The way she spoke to his mother was barely polite detachment, bordering on contempt. He could somewhat understand, to Scarlet his mother was nothing but a mindless doll for Lucius to display, following blindly to what he said. Draco couldn’t begin to tell her how his mother only did what she did out of fear, as Scarlet didn’t really understand the concept anymore; her training had leeched out all the compassion she could have felt for puppets of the Dark Lord.

 

“Of course, dear. Whatever you both need,” replied his mother in a rarely heard tone, Draco would have called it almost flustered but Malfoys didn’t display such undignified emotions.

 

“Thank you, mother. We’ll be sure to owl you in the unlikely case we forgot something. Take care, we will be back for the holidays” he replied giving a kiss to his mother’s cheek. He was anxious to get on the train and on his way to Hogwarts; to get his plans going. Not to catch a glimpse of a certain witch.

 

* * *

 

“Merlin, there is a lot of wizards and witches here…” Scarlet commented with practiced nonchalance. Draco gave her a long, considering look while Scarlet glanced around thumbing at her lip. A nervous habit she hadn’t outgrown from childhood.

 

“Don’t tell me you are intimidated by these gits?” He would have laughed at the offended glare she shot him if they weren’t in a crowded platform… then he remembered, his father had eyes everywhere… and if he wanted to sell people on the idea that Scarlet was his mate he had to act a bit out of character, so he did. He laughed; it was a little throaty from disuse, but laughter nonetheless. It caused the students within hearing range to look around and double take realizing it was _the_ Draco Malfoy laughing, as if they had just seen professor Snape jump out of a trunk and dance the Macarena. That was funny too, so he gave one last chuckle; with the corner of his lips still curled up he turned and looked at Scarlet who gave him an amused look in return. They hadn’t really talked about what to specifically do in Hogwarts to sell the idea but he supposed that was a good start.

 

“Quick! Zabini, check the weather in hell, must be unusually cold if Draco is good-naturally laughing at something. Something not causing someone bodily harm!” said a voice from behind them, he noticed that his body and the trolley and bags were blocking Scarlet from sight.

 

“Why don’t you just call your mother Pansy, since she lives there” Blaise answered, earning a nasty glare from Pansy which he only grinned at and continued “But tell me mate, did a spell go awry and turn you into the anti-Draco?”

 

You can’t hex your oldest friends, Draco thought no matter how impertinent they are. They had earned as much by putting up with his arse throughout the years. But really, they were basically comparing him to that twit Seamus so maybe a colour-change charm to turn their hair neon pink wouldn’t be too underserving. Before he could answer though, Pansy interrupted “Yes, Draco. It’s impossible to imagine you without a scowl on your face, at least an arrogant smirk, to what do we attribute this small miracle?”

 

“Draco… really with friends like these, it’s a wonder your house hasn’t won the cup in years!” Scarlet said emerging from behind the trolley. Draco knew their faces were going to be hilarious. Good thing he had his wand ready to capture the moment, there was no way he wasn’t using this picture for some good old blackmail.

 

* * *

 

Hermione was having a weird day, or maybe she was still asleep and this was all a nightmare.

 

She had just gotten to platform 9 ¾ from the Burrow after spending the whole morning trying to avoid the Weasleys’ last minute attempts to pair her off with Ron. She was exhausted. In fact, all that had gone on for the past week were poorly disguised attempts at setting them up, and their efforts would have been less annoying and more appreciated if Hermione still fancied the redhead, in anyway at all.

 

Hermione had come to that realization at the end of last school year, her fifth year. It all came to head when she noticed Ron was finally paying attention to her in _that_ way, and it didn’t make her giddy like it would have before. In fact, it made her annoyed; other than Harry they had nothing in common, they didn’t like the same things or have the same hobbies, and he was thoughtless towards her, even with him liking her.

 

So Hermione, being the practical, logical thinking girl that she was, decided to let him know as soon as possible. On her first visit to the Burrow that summer, in fact. After they got over his initial stuttered denials they had a talk. She told him that she loved him but not in a romantic all-consuming way that she wished for, he said that love like that came with time, that she’d see if he got a chance. But Hermione knew herself and knew that she would never be able to develop that type of love for Ron. They were best friends and she knew him and Harry better than anyone, that meant that she knew all their good points, and most specifically, the bad ones. Ron's good points were not enough for Hermione to love him for his bad ones. 

 

After their talk they hugged and talked about the end of summer, when Hermione would be back to meet up with everyone so they could go to Hogwarts together. As far as she knew it had all been resolved, so with that knowledge Hermione felt free to spend her summer trying to forget about sides, and muggles and magic, and just enjoy summer with her family, attending muggle events and doing muggle things. And after a short trip to Diagon alley, re-reading the new edition of Hogwarts, A History.

 

But no, of course nothing could be so simple when it came to the Weasleys, they were after all pranksters at heart so she imagined that once Ron had let it scape that she didn’t think they could be together they did everything possible to make sure they were. From locking her in a cupboard with him, to putting Mistletoe out in August and calling it “tradition,” and the worst ones involving stolen clothes in awkward as hell situations. Obviously none of them worked but Hermione was tired from avoiding all the Weasley mischief. So finally, as soon as she got to the station she excused herself on the pretext of talking to the new prefects.

 

But back to the nightmare; Hermione saw Draco Malfoy laugh! And he was with a girl, and not some vapid groupie floozy, but some regal looking may be Italian beauty. Honestly, Hermione had been trying to tame her somewhat frizzy hair for years but no amount of charms had been able to give her the slick waves the new girl was sporting. And she  _was_ new and definitely _not_ a first year. And before she could get used to that knowledge, Draco Malfoy took a picture of his friends' shocked faces and then they were all hugging and laughing and... looking normal. And Draco was teasing them. What. Even.

 

Hermione made a soft humming sound and immediately Draco turned and looked directly at her, and stared. Hermione knew that she should look away but it was like she was frozen. And that's when the weirdest most terrifying thing happened, Draco smiled at her. Like a radiant, happy, unselfconscious smile, and Hermione couldn't breathe; he looked beautiful when he was happy to see her. Having no idea what to do with that she turned tail and ducked into the first available cart. 

 

* * *

 

Once they got to the castle, Scarlett was called off from their little group. She was presented to the rest of the students at dinner ,after all the first years were sorted. Considering last time Hogwarts had a transfer student was in the 1800s, Draco could see the need for a grand introduction, but while everyone was oohing and aaahing at the hatstall he was just fervently hoping for any house other than Hufflepuff. He got his wish and after a bit of conversation with the hat, Scarlett was sorted into Gryffindor. She went to sit with her table as was required at the first dinner, next to Longbottom of all people; Draco really should have given her a short run down of the morons to avoid in her house, thankfully that put her only two people away from Hermione so he could keep an eye on her and his ma… Hermione at the same time.

 

That was the first time since the short glimpse at the station that he had seen her. Her hair was curly but soft looking as usual, her expression animated and excited as she talked to the Weaselette, in short she looked beautiful as always. But as he had not been able to get anywhere within a hundred feet of Hermione since they got back he had no actual proof that she was his mate, however seeing as how he could not keep his eyes away from their table all through dinner, he had an inkling. That, and the fact that seeing her talking to that redheaded nitwit had his blood boiling and his teeth aching as if fangs were waiting to sprout.

 

After dinner Draco filled Blaise and Pansy in on his latest “assignment” and showed them his father’s letter.

 

“So you are a Veela? And your dad truly is a death eater and wants to make _you_ a death eater but you and Scarlett would rather die than do what daddy dearest says?”

 

“Well… I have Veela magic in me so I am part Veela at best… but yes Blaise, that about sums it up.”

 

“Ok well… that’s fine. Looking at this is giving me a headache,” said Blaise waving the parchment impatiently “so how about we go let off some steam?”

 

“That’s it? That’s all you have to say about this?” screeched Pansy.

 

Draco was relieved by Blaise’s response but he couldn’t help but agree with Pansy, it seemed like Blaise did not get the gravity of the situation. Lots of people could die depending on how they all played this, if they decided to play this. Lots of people would die anyway with the impending war.

 

“Blaise, mate. Do you not understand how many people’s lives are at risk here? Not just our families, our loved ones but if this goes badly… I dare not think what atrocities we will be forced to witness happen to muggle-borns in the castle.” That was the first time he had referred to them as such, even though it had been months since he had even thought of the slur.

 

“What makes you think I don’t understand? Obviously, if we let death eaters in we would single-handedly cause the fall of Hogwarts. Seems like a simple concept to me.” Blaise said with an icy stare “But rather than think about this on my first day back after a summer spent with my mother and step-dad number whatever, I want to forget for a second that our lives are shitty and complicated and pretend like we are reuniting with a best mate and spend it catching up on good things”

 

Draco thought about it and realized that this might be the last night they’ll have to feel like normal students, to be lighthearted and free. He realized that things like plotting and planning could wait to have a memory with his best friends.

 

“Alright, alright Zabini” replied Pansy with a forced smirk “don’t get your knickers in a twist. We all know how difficult it is for you to do more than snog subpar witches in cupboards” Draco could see Blaise’s hand inching to his wand so with a glare at both he stepped between them to get to his trunk, successfully interrupting their almost fight, he rummaged around for a bit. When he found what he was looking for he got up and held up the expensive bottle of Firewhiskey. “Here, might as well have the good stuff if we are going to risk my prefect’s badge.”

 

“I knew I loved you for a reason, Draco dearest” Pansy said with a simpering smile. Draco gave her an unimpressed stare at the endearment, part of having a mate meant that no one other than his perfect match was appealing to him but he was still able to tell when his pheromones affected people. Like now, he could tell that Pansy was giving some thought to being Draco’s mate. He was already dreading having to tell her that neither her nor Scarlett were Herm… the one.

 

“Seventh floor anyone?” Blaise asked with a grin, distracting Draco from his musings. Draco smiled, that is the perfect place for a group of Slytherins and a Gryffindor to break a few rules. It was good that the room of requirement was such a selective place and only a handful of students knew of its location.

 

"Sounds good. I gave Scarlett a Protean charmed bracelet, I’ll let her know to meet me outside her common room and we’ll meet you there. Try not to get caught, I know Pansy is a prefect but it would still be hard to explain why she's with you so late, or entirely too easy" Draco said with a suggestive wink. Their identical grossed out faces made them glare at each other, offended. “Scarlett has probably never heard of the room of requirement so try to make it as awe-inspiring as possible.”

 

“Alright, don’t take long. We might kill each other if you do”

 

* * *

  

Hermione found them by accident. Really. She did not mean to follow him. _Them_ , she didn’t mean to follow _them_ to the Room of Requirement. When she saw the new girl Scarlett waiting outside the fat lady’s portrait she couldn’t just take off the invisibility cloak and say hi. She was a prefect now, which gave her some freedom regarding curfew but she did not want to seem like she was taking advantage of her position; not to mention some of the books she needed to read were only allowed to 7 th years or professors. And when she was finally considering showing herself Malfoy comes from the left corridor to fetch the new girl!

 

And so here she was now… hiding in the Room of Requirements accidentally spying on a bunch of Slytherins.

 

And another Gryffindor, oddly enough.

 

What was Malfoy’s relationship with her anyway? And why was he acting all weird. Hermione could swear that every once in a while he’d look directly in her direction. But there was no way; she was being quieter than a mouse. Malfoy’s next comment drew her away from her inner rambling.

 

“Au contraire ma chérie…” Said the stupid flirt to the new Gryffindor. “I think squibs have the best of both worlds. Sure, they have no magic. But they know about the magical world, and there are many artifacts they can use that don’t require magic. They can go around and do muggle things, free of the pressure of being a pureblood.”

 

Hermione didn’t know if she wanted to punch him in his stupid privileged pureblood face or expire from the shock of a Malfoy envying squibs.

 

“Draco has a point there, first one he’s ever had! You ok mate, your head hurt or anything?” Blaise got a cushion thrown at his face for his trouble. Honestly, it was so odd to see all these people looking so… normal; looks like her weird day wasn’t over yet. “But seriously, what would you do if you were free as a squib? I would buy one of those music blocks, the tiny ones that hold thousands of muggle songs, and the computer that comes with it,” continued Blaise enthusiastically.

 

“I think is the music block that comes with the computer. But I would buy a telly, one of those flat ones, and watch funny muggle shows every day,” Pansy added with a giggle.

 

“You guys are so boring, I would sky dive from one of those plane things muggles fly in, I’ll just free-fall with nothing but the earth to catch me and one of those bags to break my fall.”

 

“Draco, I’m sure there’s more to it than that, you would probably die if you fell from that high with no wand. But you know what? I would go to one of those muggle amusement parks with you guys and try everything there!”

 

“Yeah, that sounds like it would be fun!! They are always so big and colorful. And full of people.”

 

After that, a comfortable silence fell in the room, no doubt all four of them imagining what they would do. It wasn’t until Pansy’s quiet “I would be free… free to do what I want, believe what I wanted, and marry who I want” that the spell was broken.

 

 “Well, some non-purebloods don’t have that choice either” Scarlett said ruefully. Suddenly Draco got up and looked at all of them.

 

“Then let’s have a toast to the ones responsible, here’s to all forefathers who made freedom an impossibility. May you rot in the deepest levels of hell you bloody bastards.” He took the shot of Firewhiskey and threw the glass in the fire, where it shattered and flared up; all three of them chorused “To bastard forefathers!” and did the same, each earning a flare up of acknowledgment.

 

Hermione thought, for the first time ever, how one truly understands someone else’s situation until they experience a candid moment such as this. The pressures of being a pureblood never would have crossed her mind if she hadn’t been here. She never would have thought to compare herself to Malfoy and to acknowledge that he was born into his legacy like she was born into hers. 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 Here is what Veela!Draco looks like in my head, forgive my ridiculous writing and edits. This guy is Ben Foster. And credits go to the people who took the pics. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote this chapter from top to bottom and almost forgot how difficult it was to write in Hermione's voice. I think Draco seems more... believable, but I honestly don't know why she's being so difficult! But anyway... it gets a bit easier in the next few chapters. Which I'm rewriting, mostly editing. 
> 
>  
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> Thank you for reading and please help me make this story more entertaining/better by telling me how you are liking it so far, constructive criticism is appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it and I didn't majorly waste your time. Let me know what you think. I have a plot and story progression in mind, written down and everything! So hopefully I'll finish this story soon.  
> Edit: hahaha I posted this shit a thousand ages ago... I just found my old notes after 3 apartment moves and countless reads in different fandoms. As I haven't read the books in a long-ass time, this whole thing is gonna be a clusterfuck of canon and non-canon and barely canon-y parts.


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